By Anzoo Evaline

Stakeholders in Adjumani District have convened to review the Adjumani District Production and Marketing Ordinance of 2015 in a move aimed at addressing emerging environmental and agricultural challenges, strengthening climate resilience, and promoting inclusive development for sustainable environmental management.

The review process has been facilitated by the Uganda Refugee Resilience Initiative (URRI) together with consortium partners as part of efforts to improve environmental protection and agricultural productivity in the district.

Speaking during the stakeholders’ engagement, the District Natural Resources Officer, Giyaya Charles, noted that the ordinance has been in force for nearly a decade and requires updating to respond to current realities.

“It is now almost 10 years since this ordinance was in place. It was realized that there’s need to review it so that it can capture emerging issues within these 10 years,” he said.

He explained that the district is currently facing numerous environmental concerns that must be addressed through the revised ordinance.

“So, we are able to highlight these environmental issues ranging from degradation, the poor practices of farmers that lead to deforestation, climate change that has caused the floods, drought, which is affecting production and livelihood So, our presentation on the state of the environment in Adjumani and we are also aware that production activities also affects environment like the poor practices of farming,” Giyaya added.

Mesiku Harriet, the Senior Land Management Officer in Adjumani District, emphasized that the ordinance was originally intended to strengthen food security and prevent famine in the district.

“The objective of this ordinance is to ensure food security in the district and to avoid famine. Now, these days our farmers are complaining that their agricultural officers should help them in acquiring right seeds and seed right cassava stalks because there are many farmers last year who lost cassava because of disease. How are we going to harmonize the improved seeds, and how they last?” she said.

She further highlighted concerns raised by farmers regarding the sustainability of improved seed varieties.

“Because they also said you can not plant the seeds for the second time,” she added.

Hon. Bishop Mau Kodili Gabriel, a District Local Councilor, stressed the importance of strengthening enforcement mechanisms within the ordinance to ensure effective implementation at the grassroots level.

“It is very important in this review to give responsibility to the production committee to enforce this production ordinances with the help of the LC1 and LC2 in the area. Parish chief by that time they were able to generate data. They are were able to enumerate what a farmer has and farmers were assessed according to whether the animal, whether crop you have,” he said.

He noted that proper data collection at community level would also help the district generate accurate information for planning and revenue assessment.

“So it can gives a clean data for assessing a farmer to pay revenue,” he explained.

Adrupio Irene Api, Secretary for Finance representing the LC5 Chairperson, welcomed the review process and encouraged stakeholders to ensure the ordinance benefits local farmers.

“As farmers today we are for the ordinance. The ones that we think that it will squeeze us, how are we going to give or add flesh on it so that it becomes useful to us?” she said.

She also applauded the land office for continuously empowering leaders and stakeholders with knowledge that can be passed on to communities.

“I want to thank land officer very much. I think this is the second time now we are for this ordinance. It’s empowering us so that when we go to the community, we normally talk with authority because we have the tools in us.

“So, I’m urging us who are getting the knowledge, let us get out Changed. Let us talk to our farmers out there,” she added.

The review of the ordinance is expected to strengthen climate-smart agricultural practices, improve environmental conservation, and enhance sustainable livelihoods for communities across Adjumani District.

END.